In March this year I wrote a post expressing approbation for BBC Radio 3.
Since then there has been a re-vamp at the station and listeners will have opinions calibrated on a scale from one to three. R3 listeners are a curmudgeonly lot and resistant to change. Level one is “rather irritated”; level two, “extremely cross”; level three “ff” (fucking furious).
On Sunday 12th May the presenter, I think Sarah Walker, had had a late night. She had been to her local cinema, not to watch Madama Butterfly live from the Met, but the Eurovision Song Contest live from Malmö. Well maybe it was a treat for her children but she should have kept that to herself. The schedule has been tweaked and that always annoys Radio 3 listeners. The presenters have started boasting about the increase in listeners to the station – not what R3 listeners like to hear. A true R3 listener would like to be the only person on the planet tuned to the channel. And that old Radio 2 chestnut, Friday Night is Music Night has migrated to R 3 – whatever next? Sounds of the Sixties with Tony Blackburn? Slight digression, Irish readers may remember It’s Saturday it’s Lemon’s Day.
Actually the big picture is that this century there have been round about two million listeners. It’s interesting that Classic FM has lost so much of its audience. I had never heard of Scala Radio. It is part of the Bauer Media Group that owns: Absolute Radio, Greatest Hits Radio, Jazz FM, Scala Radio, Hits Radio, KISS, Planet Rock, Magic, Kerrang! Radio and Heat Radio. I haven’t heard of them either.
I find I am listening to Radio 3 more these days, particularly as the election dominates the airwaves on R 4. I prefer World Service news. The presenters are well-informed and, especially Georgia Mann and Petroc Trelauny, share their knowledge without being condescending or cocky. Ian Skelly’s cadence unfortunately continues to irritate me. Private Passions, Composer of the Week, a Saturday evening opera, Choral Evensong and sometimes Sound of Cinema simply do not exist on other stations. And I’m not a snob about F N is M N. Here’s last nights programme.
What’s not to like? And the more outings from the five BBC orchestras the better to justify their existence. And don’t talk about the choirs. It beats me why Auntie cannot strip out a few layers of management and leave their orchestras and choirs to get on with their jobs.
What a topic to get me started! The perceived need to compete with Classic FM has ruined Radio 3, and there is far too much chat from the presenters, some of whom are very irritating besides not being very audible.
I certainly listen more than previously.
Petroc Trelawny for breakfast.
Fellow Irishman Sean Rafferty , early evening.
Jools Holland on Saturdays
Sarah walker Sunday mornings.
When that fails to satisfy ,Otto radio…either opera, classical or Baroque
By chance we heard this, now on R3, in the garden yesterday evening. Certainly changes, but FNiMN quite fun. New production of Carmen tonight.
Klara Continuó from Belgium starts with some Flemish plugs, but slides into comment free classics all day.
R3 is well received here in Australia by music lovers , Petrocs morning show is mid afternoon here . We wanted him here for The Australian Festival of Chamber Music in Townsville, but thank you Covid it was not to be.